Comprehensive Needs Assessment

School Improvement Plan

Instructional
Practices/Strategies

Student
Achievement

Data
Components

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Areas of Strengths

Areas of Concern

We met all AMO proficiency targets for both the 2012 - 2013 and 2013 - 2014
school years.
For both the 2012 - 2013 and 2013 - 2014 school years, 7th Grade Math and
8th Grade Science exceeded expected growth in the School Value Added
model.
For 2012 - 2013, the following groups had a performance composite (based
on proficiency data) higher than the Western schools and the entire WCPSS:
Level 1 and 2, SWD, LEP, Multi-Risk, Black, Multiracial, Black Male,
Hispanic/Latino Male, and Multiracial Male.
For 2013 - 2014, the following composites were higher than those for both
Western Area and all WCPSS Middle Schools: 7th Reading (Levels 3, 4, and 5),
Grades 6 - 8 Reading (Levels 4 and 5), Grade 8 Science (Levels 3, 4, and 5)
and Grade 8 Science (Levels 4 and 5)

We have not met expected growth as a school for three years 2011 - 2012, 2012 2013, and 2013 - 2014. The EVAAS Growth Status for 2011 - 2012 was -1.89 and it
was -2.46 for 2012 - 2013 and -2.55 for 2013 - 2014.
For the 2012 - 2013 school year, 6th Grade Math, 6th Grade Reading, and 8th
Grade Math did not meet expected growth. For the 2013 - 2014 school year, the
same three areas did not meet expected growth again, and Common Core Math 1
EOC also did not meet expected growth.
For the 2012 - 2013 school year, while we met all AMO targets, we exceeded a
few of them by a limited amount including LEP Reading 11.6 to 9.4 (Percent
Proficient to Target Goal), Black Math 25.6 to 22.2, and ED Math 31.4 to 27.7. For
the 2013 - 2014 school year, we met all AMO targets but for some we met them
despite missing the Goal percent by a small number. Here are the areas where we
met the targets despite the Percent Proficient was slightly less than the Goal
Percent (Percent Proficient to Goal Percent): LEP Reading 14.5 to 18.5, SWD
Reading 21.6 to 18.0, Black Math 30.0 to 29.4, Hispanic Math 39.4 to 35.0,
Economically Disadvantaged Math 34.9 to 32.8, LEP Math 25.7 to 23.9, and SWD
Math 21.2 to 16.0.
Benchmark results from the 2013 - 2014 school year show low percentages of
students who are projected to be proficient including 6th Grade Math in Quarter 3
at 44.0%, 7th Grade Math in Quarter 3 at 41.3%, and 8th Grade Math in Quarter 3
at 36.0%.

PathDriver Screening Assessment given in math and reading three times

during the 2013 - 2014 school year and showed a small number of students
"at-risk" in literacy and a larger number of students "at-risk" in math. Based
on this data, language arts teachers provided specific differentiated instruction
as remediation for the at-risk in literacy students within the regular class
setting, while V-Math classes were created to provide remediation for the
students at-risk in math.
Since January 2014, all core subject teachers have started to use Common
Formative Assessments in their classes with data being anaylzed in PLT's.
During the 2013 - 2014 school year, West Cary's members of the
Teacher-Leader Corps have presented a variety of instructional technology
ideas to the staff including various tools within Discovery Education
During the 2013 - 2014 school year, IRT and AIG teachers have pushed into
classrooms to support math and language arts instruction.

Walk-through Data is very limited so additional data is needed in this area to

make accurate decisions concerning instructional practices.
From the limited walk-throughs in 2013 - 2014, literacy was being incorporated
during the instruction that was observed in approximately 50% of the classrooms
and student engagement was observed in approximately 78.6% of the classrooms
visited.
PLT's meet weekly but tend to focus more on planning rather than on data
analysis and student performance.
Student grades are not aligned to the projected proficiency scores on the
benchmark tests with many more grades of A and B than the projected proficiency
scores would indicate. Discussions during the 2013 - 2014 school year have
included how the retest policy within the school grading policy may impact the
alignment of grades with projected proficiency scores.

Page 1 of 20

Comprehensive Needs Assessment

School Improvement Plan

Data
Components

Areas of Strengths

Staff and
Student
Demographics

2012 - 2013:
School capacity of 1,075 students
20th Day Membership of 937
Annual School Campus % Crowding: 87.2
Student Stability at 94.3%
West Cary had 100% of classes taught by highly qualified teachers
43.5% of teachers have advanced degrees with 5 who are National Board
Certified
23.9% have been teaching 25 years of more
1 BT (2.2% of teachers)

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Areas of Concern
2012 - 2013:
13.0% Staff Turnover Rate
52.5% Level 1 and Level 2 students
129 short term suspensions involving 82 students
2013 - 2014:
30 suspensions as of 5/15/14

2013 - 2014:
20th Day Membership of 864 students
10 BT's

Page 2 of 20

Comprehensive Needs Assessment

School Improvement Plan

Perception

Data
Components

Areas of Strengths

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Areas of Concern

2012 - 2013:
From the Teacher Working Conditions Survey, every reported comparison
result had an increase in the % agree from 2010 to 2012 except for 4 (77 out
of 81 increased) with the following examples:
Use of time in your school including time to collaborate (from 65.3 to 89.2),
sufficient instructional time to meet the needs of all students (from 58.1 to
85.3), and teachers are protected from duties that interfere with their essential
role (39.2 to 70.1)
Managing Student Conduct including students understand expectations (70.3
to 100), follow rules of conduct (59.5 to 94.0), and administrators consistently
enforce the rules (48.6 to 74.6)
Teacher Leadership including teachers recognized as educational experts
(82.2 to 92.6) and effective process for making group decisions to solve
problems (61.1 to 86.8)
In addition, West Cary had a higher % agree on the 2012 survey compared to
Middle Schools, Wake County, and NC on 77 out of 81 statements.

2012 - 2013:

From the 2012 - 2013 student survey given to 7th graders, Teachers give
students a second chance if work is not right the first time was the only area
where West Cary's students gave a higher positive value than the district

On the 2012 - 2013 Student Survey, 7th graders rated West Cary lower than the
average Wake County score in all by one category with the following examples:
Overall quality of the school (exellent 9 to 22 and good 44 to 47 -- West Cary to
Wake)
I feel safe at my school (excellent 12 to 23 and good 62 to 63)
Bullying is a problem at my school (strongly agree 18 to 14 and agree 39 to 36)

75% of parents get the weekly e-news messages from the school
2013 - 2014
From the 2014 NC TWC Survey, WCMS had a higher % Agree than All NC, Wake,
and NC MS on 74 out of 86 total statements (86.04%) including all of the
statements in the following categories: Community Support and Involvement
(8/8), Managing Student Conduct (7/7), Professional Development (14/14), and
Overall (2/2). Of the 12 statements not included above, in 3 of them the
WCMS Agree was higher than at least 1 of the other reported percentages.
The % of WCMS staff completing the survey rose from 92% in 2012 to 100% in
2014.
19 out of 83 statements (22.89%) had a higher % agree in 2014 compared to
2012 -- 1 statement was the same in both years (the faculty work in a school
environment that is safe -- 100% both times).

On the TWC survey, the following areas declined from 2010 to 2012:
access to instructional technology (82.7 to 76.8), sufficient access to office
equipment and supplies (84.0 to 82.4), reliabilty and speed of internet connections
are sufficient (89.3 to 87.0), and teachers provide parents with useful information
about student learning (100.0 to 98.5)
On the 2012 TWC survey, the following areas did not have as high a % agree as the
group listed:
non-instructional time is sufficient (60.9 which is less than middle schools at 61.7),
protected from duties that interfere with their essential role (70.1 which is less than
Wake County at 71.8), teachers feel comfortable raising issues and concerns (69.1
which is less than Wake County at 70.1 and in NC at 70.7), and teachers have
autonomy to make decisions about instructional pacing (79.1 which is less than
middle schools at 81.0 and NC at 79.5)

2013 - 2014
On the 2014 NC TWC Survey, the following areas did not had a lower % agree than
All NC, Wake, and NC MS (data provided is All NC/Wake/NC MS/WCMS):
Non-instructional time provided for teachers is sufficient (62.8/62.3/65.4/41.8),
Reliability and speed of internet connections are sufficient to support instructional
practices (76.1/71.3/74.2/60.3), The school leadership makes a sustained effort to
address concerns about the use of time in school (79.6/78.3/78.9/70.7), and
Teachers have autonomy to make decisions about instructional delivery (i.e. pacing,
materials, pedagogy) (79.9/76.4/82.8/75.9).
Both the Non-instructional time concern and the teachers have autonomy to make
decisions about instructional delivery were also lower scoring statements in the
2012 TWC survey.

Page 3 of 20

Comprehensive Needs Assessment

School Improvement Plan

Program

Data
Components

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Areas of Strengths

Areas of Concern

PBIS appears to be working as discipline referrals are down and students

know our IMPS expectations based on an evaluator questioning students about
our program.
Extended Learning Time program is serving a large number of students each
week.
V-Math elective was implemented with positive impact at the 6th grade level
based on the pre/post test results.

While discipline referrals are down, this could be reflective of the new system that
teachers are to use for referrals.
Working Lunch has been very successful for certain grades and teachers but not
for others -- need consistency across the school to make this successful.
Extended Learning Time can become more homework help or social time as the
number of students attending increases and may not be reaching the students who
really need this support.
V-Math classes for grades 7and 8 have not been as successful as 6th grade. Data
entry is not entered in a timely manner, so in the future all V-Math teachers will
received data entry professional development.
We need data to know the impact of the community volunteers in the classroom
program where members of the community spend time in specific classrooms on a
weekly basis to provide extra support.

Page 4 of 20

Comprehensive Needs Assessment

School Improvement Plan

Priority Concerns
We did not meet expected growth as a school for
2011 - 2012, 2012 - 2013, and 2013 - 2014; for
2012 - 2013, 6th Grade Math, 6th Grade Reading,
and 8th Grade Math did not meet expected growth;
for 2013 - 2014, 6th Grade Math, 6th Grade
Reading, 8th Grade Math, and Common Core Math
1 EOC results did not meet expected growth

Root Causes
(with evidence)
Lack of or ineffective use of effective teaching
strategies designed to strengthen all students'
performance on the math and reading EOG/EOC
tests based on the EVAAS growth results
Inconsistent levels of rigor in classes including
not enough emphasis on questions and activiites
in the higher levels of depth of knowledge as
reflected on the CASE 21 Benchmark results

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Solutions
Target as SIP goal
Strengthen our PLT's through professional
development that includes the expectations of a
successful PLT as well as on improving our use of
data in decision-making processes within the PLT's
Improve our walk-through process in terms of
the tool to be used, the training of all involved,
and an increase in the number of walk-throughs
conducted
Share successful literacy and math strategies in
PLT's
PLT's develop common assessments and discuss
the results of these assessments
PLT's engage in on-going discussions about data
using the data to assist in making decisions about
instructional practices to increase student
learning

Page 5 of 20

Comprehensive Needs Assessment

School Improvement Plan

Priority Concerns
On the 2013 - 2014 Case 21 Benchmarks,
percentages of students who are projected to be
proficient are low including the following:
Quarter 3 -- Grade 6 Math -- 44.0%
Quarter 3 -- Grade 7 Math -- 41.3%
Quarter 3 -- Grade 8 Math -- 36.0%

Root Causes
(with evidence)
Misalignment of instruction with the Common
Core State Standards
Inconsistent implementation of PEP's and other
procedures in place to determine appropriate
interventions for at-risk students
Inconsistent effectiveness of data discussions
in PLT's in terms of using data to revise
instructional strategies or create plans to support
all students
Not meeting the needs of all students through
interventions currently in place

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Solutions
Target as SIP goal
Strengthen our PLT's through professional
development that includes the expectations of a
successful PLT as well as on improving our use of
data in decision-making processes within the PLT's
Improve our walk-through process in terms of
the tool to be used, the training of all involved,
and an increase in the number of walk-throughs
conducted
PLT's develop common assessments and discuss
the results of these assessments
PLT's engage in on-going discussions about data
using the data to assist in making decisions about
instructional practices to increase student
learning
Create remediation classes that meet during
students' elective time for targeted students and
remediation groups that meet at other times
including during a remediation/enrichment period
or after school
Improve the alignment of students' grades with
the projected percent proficient on the Benchmark
Results by adjusting the school grading policy
especially with respect to retests

Page 6 of 20

Comprehensive Needs Assessment

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Data Summary
Describe your conclusions
At West Cary MS, data is driving our decision-making processes. We want to recognize our strengths including that we met all of our AMO proficiency targets for
2012 - 2013 and 2013 - 2014 and both 7th Grade Math and 8th Grade Science exceeded expected growth in both 2012 - 2013 and 2013 - 2014. Some of our student
demographic groups also had performance composite scores (based on our proficiency scores) that exceeded the average of those for Western schools and the
average for all WCPSS schools in 2012 - 2013, and for 2013 - 2014, 7th Reading (Levels 3, 4, and 5), 6-8 Reading (Levels 4 and 5), 8th Science (Levels 3, 4, and 5),
and 8th Science (Levels 4 and 5) also met this distinction. We have administered the PathDriver Screening Assessment three times during the 2013 - 2014 year in
math and reading and have used the results to create remediation opportunities for the students found to be "at-risk" from this assessment. We have started using
Common Formative Assessments in core subjects, have had our IRT and AIG teacher push into classrooms to support math and language arts instruction, and have
heard presentations from our Teacher-Leader Corps members on technology. In addition the 2012 Teacher Working Conditions Survey yielded increases from the
2010 survey in positive responses for 77 of the 81 questions, and our positive responses were higher than those of other middle schools, Wake County, and all NC on
77 of the 81 questions. For 2014, our positive responses were higher than those of other middle schools, Wake County, and all NC on 74 out of 86 questions, and we
had a higher percent agree on 19 out of 83 questions compared to 2012. We also had 100% completion fo 2014 up from 92% in 2012. Finally our PBIS program
appears to be running fairly smoothly with students able to articulate our IMPS expectations.
While we wish that everything was a strength, we do recognize that we have some areas of concern that we need to address as we move forward. Some of the minor
concerns come from our program evaluation with adjustments needed to try to strengthen our Extending Learning Time and Working Lunch programs. We also need
to ensure that all of our V-Math classes show positive results instead of having positive results only from 6th grade this year. Our major concerns focus on student
achievement and our instructional practices/strategies. Our biggest concern is that we have not made expected growth for the last three years and last year's
benchmark scores projected over 50% of our students not being proficient on the 2014 EOG/EOC tests. We have included instructional specialists on our walk-through
data collection team, and our classroom walk-throughs are increasing. We need additional walk-through data, however, to accurately evaluate the effectiveness of
our instructional practides/strategies. In addition, our PLT's are not showing the effectiveness we believe is necessary for them to help improve student performance.
Based on the areas of concern above, we have a plan for 2014 - 2016 that we believe will ensure that we maintain our recent success in meeting all AMO proficiency
targets while also working to ensure that we meet or exceed expected growth as reported by EVAAS. We will implement effective PLT's that will focus on enhancing
student learning by completing the following: re-evaluate our grading policy focusing on the relationship between proficiency and student grades including our retest
policy, expand the options for PLT's to report their agendas and minutes, train staff on what makes a PLT effective including the expectation for our PLT's, increase
the number of walk-throughs , share literacy and math strategies, develop common assessments, participate in training on data analyisis, and discuss results of
various assessments and use the results to make decisions concerning instructional practices. We will also create remediation opportunities for targeted students
outside of their regular class time through both an academic elective as well as during a remediation/enrichment time. In addition to selecting these students and
creating a schedule for their remediation activities, teachers will monitor student performance to assess the success of this process. With careful monitoring and a
willingness to adjust our instructional practices based on our data, we expect that this plan will help our students meet all AMO proficiency targets as well as meet or
exceed Expected Growth.

Page 7 of 20

Membership of School Improvement Team

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Principal:

Wanza Cole

Date:

Oct - 2014

SIP Team Members

Name

School Based Job Title

Ann Mahlitz

Parent

Brittany Jones

Teacher

Charlesa Peoples-Duncan

Assistant Principal

Dale Archer

Teacher

Deb Kelly

Teacher Assistant

Elly Sato

Parent

Jacqueline Deas-Brown

Teacher

Juli Betts

Teacher

Kamilla Dancy

Teacher

10 Kathy Smyre

Teacher

11 Kevin Lauenstein

Instructional Support Personnel

12 Marvin Breedlove

Teacher

13 N. Edmon Jones, III

Assistant Principal

14 Sheila Pattee

Instructional Support Personnel

15 Shwety Goswami

Teacher

16 Stephanie Mood

Parent

17 Tara Jackson

Teacher

18 Toni Harris

Teacher

19 Wanza Cole

Principal

20 Wendy Blue

Teacher

21 William Slechta

Teacher

Page 8 of 20

Mission, Vision and Value Statements

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

Date:

Jun - 2014

Mission Statement:
The West Cary Middle School Community will facilitate learning for each student to become a globally
competitive and responsible citizen.
Vision Statement:
Our school community will work collaboratively to promote a safe and inviting learning environment. This
environment will support and prepare all students to successfully progress, on time, to their next grade
level. We will continually encourage responsible decision making that will make a positive impact on
student learning, and will foster the development of students to become productive citizens.
Value Statement:
Relationships: At WCMS we value professional, nurturing relationships established by a climate of
integrity, maturity, positivity, and self discipline.
Process: WCMS community takes responsibility for improving student achievement by consistently
focusing on data driven processes.
Results: WCMS uses our results to recognize our success and focus attention on areas for improvement.

Page 9 of 20

Summary of Goals, Key Processes and Action Steps

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

LEA:

Wake County (920)

School Goal All West Cary Middle School students will meet or exceed
Expected Growth as reported via EVAAS and all AMO targets
as demonstrated by the appropriate End-of-Grade or
End-of-Course test in all tested subjects.
Goal Manager Wanza Cole
Strategic Directive Focus on Learning and Teaching
State Board of Education Goal Globally Competitive Students
Data Justification for Goal Based on As a school we have not met expected growth in the last
Comprehensive Needs Assessment two years (-1.89 for 2011 - 2012 and -2.46 for 2012 - 2013)
-- did not meet expected growth in 2012 - 2013 in 6th grade
math, 6th grade reading, and 8th grade math.
As a school we met all AMO targets for the 2012 - 2013
school year, but we exceeded the target goals by a limited
amount in certain cases including LEP Reading 11.6 to 9.4
(Percent Proficient compared to our Target Goal), Black
Math 25.6 to 22.2, and ED Math 31.4 to 27.7.
Benchmark results for 2013 - 2014 show low percentages of
students who are projected to be proficient including 6th
Grade Math Quarter 3 44.0%, 7th Grade Math Quarter 3
41.3%, and 8th Grade Math Quarter 3 36.0%.

Key Process Implementation of effective Professional Learning Teams to enhance

student learning
Process Manager N. Edmon Jones, III and Charlesa Peoples-Duncan
Completion Date Jun - 2016
Restrainers Scheduling
Time management
Buy in
Staff Development/Understanding
Resources AIG Teacher
After-School Tutorial Program
Community Volunteers
Middle Schools programming
Central Office Staff
Administration
Staff development
Transportation
Conversion of positions per state and WCPSS guidelines
EVAAS
PBIS
Duty Free Lunch and Planning
Healthy Active Children Policy
Safe and Orderly Schools Plan
Character Education Plan
We wish to utilize all budget flexibilities allowed by DPI, general statutes, applicable laws and
local policies
PathDriver
Parental Engagement

Page 10 of 20

Summary of Goals, Key Processes and Action Steps

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

LEA:

Wake County (920)

Measurable Process PLT leaders will keep a record of meeting agendas/minutes for review by
Check(s) department chairs, SIT members, and administration to evaluate the
effectiveness of PLT's.
PLT's will analyze data from the following categories at least twice a month
and will have results available for review by department chairs, Data Team
Members, SIT members, and administration: common assessments,
classroom grades, literacy and math strategies being used in all subject
areas, and walk-through data.

Action Step Re-evaluate the West Cary Grading Policy including

the relationship between grades and student
proficiency
Timeline From 6/2014 To 8/2014

Action Step Implement any changes to the West Cary Grading

Policy
Timeline From 8/2014 To 8/2014

Action Step Develop acceptable formats and required items for

meeting agendas/minutes and create designated
location to store them
Timeline From 8/2014 To 9/2014

Action Step Train staff on what makes a PLT effective and what
the school expects from PLT's
Timeline From 8/2014 To 9/2014

Action Step Develop (or confirm one to use) walk-through data

collection tool
Timeline From 8/2014 To 9/2014

Action Step Share walk-through data collection tool with all staff
and train those who will be conducting the
walk-throughs in the use of the tool
Timeline From 9/2014 To 10/2014

Action Step PLT members share literacy and math strategies they
are using in their classrooms
Timeline From 8/2014 To 6/2016

Action Step Develop Common Formative Assessments and

Common Summative Assessments
Timeline From 8/2014 To 6/2016

Action Step Discuss results of Benchmark Tests, EOG's, EOC's, PLT-created Common Formative
Assessments, PLT-created Common Summative Assessments, PathDriver assessments,
and student course grades; use the results to make decisions concerning instructional
practices including pacing, retesting, and particular instructional strategies to include to
improve student learning
Timeline From 8/2014 To 6/2016

Page 11 of 20

Summary of Goals, Key Processes and Action Steps

School Improvement Plan

10

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

LEA:

Wake County (920)

Action Step Participate in on-going Data Analysis trainings

Timeline From 8/2014 To 6/2016

11

Action Step Keep meeting agendas/minutes for all PLT meetings

and post agendas/minutes in the designated location
Timeline From 9/2014 To 6/2016

12

Action Step Staff conduct walk-through visits and share the

results with the PLT's -- starting no later than 10/2014
Timeline From 10/2014 To 6/2016

Key Process Create remediation opportunities for targeted students outside of regular
class time
Process Manager Tara Jackson and Kamilla Dancy
Completion Date Jun - 2016
Restrainers Time management
Scheduling
Buy in
Resources AIG Teacher
After-School Tutorial Program
Community Volunteers
Middle Schools programming
Central Office Staff
Administration
Staff development
Transportation
Conversion of positions per state and WCPSS guidelines
EVAAS
PBIS
Duty Free Lunch and Planning
Healthy Active Children Policy
Safe and Orderly Schools Plan
Character Education Plan
We wish to utilize all budget flexibilities allowed by DPI, general statutes,
applicable laws and local policies
PathDriver
Parental Engagement
Measurable Process Teachers of remediation elective classes or targeted remediation groups will
Check(s) keep attendance records for review by SIT members and administration to
document student attendance.
Teachers of remediation elective classes will use their in-class assessments to
measure the growth of their students and to monitor the effects of the program.
All teachers will use the results of common assessments to measure the growth
of the students targeted for remediation and to monitor the effects of the
program.
Page 12 of 20

Summary of Goals, Key Processes and Action Steps

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

LEA:

Wake County (920)

Action Step Identify students for remediation elective classes

Timeline From 6/2014 To 8/2014

Action Step Create or select curriculum for the remediation

elective classes as well as a schedule for the classes
Timeline From 6/2014 To 8/2014

Action Step Create and schedule other opportunities for student

remediation outside of regular class time
Timeline From 6/2014 To 8/2014

Action Step Identify students for the remediation times outside of

class
Timeline From 8/2014 To 6/2016

Action Step Provide remediation to students through the

remediation elective classes and the times outside of
the regular class schedule and collect data on their
attendance and academic growth
Timeline From 8/2014 To 6/2016

Page 13 of 20

Waiver Request
School:

School Improvement Plan

Date

West Cary MS

Plan Year 2014-2016

Apr - 2014

Waiver Requested
None
How will this waiver impact school improvement?
Not applicable
Please indicate the type of waiver:

Local

Please indicate the policy to be waived

Not applicable

Page 14 of 20

Summary Sheet of Professional Development Activities

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

School Year:

2014-2015

Development Activities for

Goal
Supported:

Topic:

Participants:

Supporting Data:

Literacy Strategies across

the entire curriculum

All licensed staff Goal 1

As part of West Cary's continued

emphasis on literacy instruction in all
classrooms, additional literacy strategies
will be presented to the staff to assist
teachers in finding ways to help all
students meet or exceed grade level
expectations and demonstrate growth.

Technology including a focus All licensed staff Goal 1

on Discovery Education via
the Teacher Leader Corps

All licensed staff will continue to receive

instruction in how to incorporate
additional technology in their classrooms
to assist them in meeting the
instructional needs of all their students.

Effective Professional
Learning Teams including
Lesson Planning/Preparation
and Data Analysis

All licensed staff Goal 1

Licensed staff will receive training to

assist them in developing effective
professional learning teams. Specific
topics will include planning effective
lessons, ways to more effectively analyze
data, and how to utilize the data in
making decisions regarding student
learning.

Cultural Proficiency

All licensed staff Goal 1

All licensed staff will examine the idea of

cultural proficiency and explore ways to
ensure that the school is meeting the
needs of the diverse families who make
up our school.

Page 15 of 20

Summary Sheet of Professional Development Activities

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

School Year:

2015-2016

Development Activities for

Topic:

Participants:

Goal Supported:

Supporting Data:

Page 16 of 20

Intervention Planning Matrix

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

School Year: 2014-2015

Student Identification

Reading

Math

Behavior

Students will be identified for intervention

support using a variety of data. The primary
criteria will be students with scores of 1 or 2
on the End-of-Grade reading test from the
previous year and those who score in the
lowest 25th percentile on the PathDriver
screening assessments for reading in the
fall. In addition, supporting data which may
also be used to identify students needing
intervention assistance include low EVAAS
projected scores, grades of 76 and below in
students' Language Arts Classes, and
teacher recommendation to I-Team
(Instructional/Intervention Team) members.
Student performance on Common Formative
Assessments in their Language Arts class as
well as the Case Benchmarks Tests for
Reading are also utilized in the identification
process.
At the end of first semester, students who
have shown significant growth in the
intervention reading class as well as in their
regular Language Arts class will be
re-evaluated. A meeting of the parents as
well as school personnel including an
administrator and I-Team members will be
held to discuss the benefits of continuing or
exiting the program. The discussion will rely
on data provided by the subject area experts
and the intervention teacher.
Throughout the intervention process,
progress monitoring of the students in the
intervention reading class will be completed
through PathDriver, and the I-Team will
monitor instruction weekly. Students' results
on Case Benchmark tests and winter and
spring PathDriver Screening Tests will also be
monitored for progress. Data will also be
analyzed as students potentially progress
through the Multi-Tiered System of Supports
interventions.

Students will be identified for intervention

support using a variety of data. The primary
criteria will be students with scores of 1 or 2
on the End-of-Grade math test from the
previous year and those who score in the
lowest 25th percentile on the PathDriver
screening assessments for math in the fall.
In addition, supporting data which may also
be used to identify students needing
intervention assistance include low EVAAS
projected scores, grades of 76 and below in
students' Math Classes, and teacher
recommendation to I-Team
(Instructional/Intervention Team) members.
Student performance on Common Formative
Assessments in their math class as well as
the Case Benchmarks Tests for math are also
utilized in the identification process.
At the end of first semester, students who
have shown significant growth in the
intervention math class as well as in their
regular math class will be re-evaluated. A
meeting of the parents as well as school
personnel including an administrator and
I-Team members will be held to discuss the
benefits of continuing or exiting the
program. The discussion will rely on data
provided by the subject area experts and the
intervention teacher.
Throughout the intervention process,
progress monitoring of the students in the
intervention math class will be completed
through PathDriver, and the I-Team will
monitor instruction weekly. Students' results
on Case Benchmark tests and winter and
spring PathDriver Screening Tests will also be
monitored for progress. Data will also be
analyzed as students potentially progress
through the Multi-Tiered System of Supports
interventions.

Students primarily are identified through

referrals in SIRS, although guidance
counselors may also identify students
through anecdotal evidence. Students may
also be identified for needing a behavior plan
through a Multi-Tiered System of Supports
process especially for low-level items that
have not needed to be reported to
administration. In addition some students
have a prior identification from a previous
school -- behavior intervention plan -- or
have an identification through special
services such as SED.
The I-Team (Instructional/Intervention Team)
members will make up the Multi-Tiered
System of Supports team who will provide
support to students with academic or
behavior concerns.
The school relies on our PBIS program to
support positive behaviors as well as to help
address inappropriate behaviors.
The "Alternate Learning Center Team" is Mr.
Owens and Ms. Harris, and they monitor the
progress of identified students to determine
when students are ready to be exited from
the intervention program for behavior.

Page 17 of 20

Intervention Planning Matrix

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

School Year: 2014-2015

Intervention Structure

Reading

Math

Behavior

After-school Extended Learning Time

sessions will be taught by the classroom
teachers focusing on reteaching and
retesting material with which students have
had difficulty. Grade level Extended
Learning Time will meet one day per week
from 2:30 - 5:00 PM. Additional reteaching
and retesting opportunities will be available
from 7:00 - 7:25 AM daily and through a 30
minute remediation/enrichment time called
ZapTime.
The elective class will meet daily for the
same length of time as any elective class
providing students with strategies to improve
their literacy skills including AOR and AMP.
Intervention Team members will be pushing
into language arts classes to provide
additional in-class support for students as
necessary.

After-school Extended Learning Time

sessions will be taught by the classroom
teachers focusing on reteaching and
retesting material with which students have
had difficulty. Grade level Extended
Learning Time will meet one day per week
from 2:30 - 5:00 PM. Additional reteaching
and retesting opportunities will be available
from 7:00 - 7:25 AM daily and through a 30
minute remediation/enrichment time called
ZapTime.
The elective class will meet daily for the
same length of time as any elective class
providing students with strategies to improve
their math skills and will include V-MATH
materials.
Intervention Team members will be pushing
into math classes to provide additional
in-class support for students as necessary.

The intervention team pushes into

classrooms and can support students whose
behavior needs monitoring. The ALC Team
pushes into classrooms instead of pulling
students into a separate setting so that
student behavior does not lead to time out of
class.
The ALC Team works to evaluate the
effectiveness of their intervention with
identified students through 1 classroom visit
per day depending on the severity of the
behavior problem and where the event took
place. They try to make the classroom visit
take place in the class where the behavior
occurred.
If the push in support does not work, the
Intervention Team will discuss other options
for addressing the behavior problem, and
they will call in any additional resource
teachers they need such as special education
teachers or other teachers who teach the
student to create a plan to solve the
problem. This would be a Tier 2 behavior
plan and would include parent input to
ensure that the parents are involved in trying
to find a solution.
The Intervention Team strongly prefers to
limit moving students to another teacher due
to issues with a particular teacher as they
feel it is much more beneficial for the
student's overall development to help the
student and the teacher find ways to work
together.

Page 18 of 20

Intervention Planning Matrix

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

School Year: 2014-2015

Reading

Math

Behavior

Instruction

Students in the Extended Learning Time

sessions or attending the before school or
enrichment/remediation time sessions will
receive instruction related to current
material with which students are having
difficulties. Professional Learning Team
discussions shape the instructional focus of
these sessions to ensure that students are
receiving the support they need to learn the
material.
Students in the elective class will focus on
learning reading and other literacy strategies
designed to meet their individual needs and
will use AOR and AMP.

Students in the Extended Learning Time

sessions or attending the before school or
enrichment/remediation time sessions will
receive instruction related to current
material with which students are having
difficulties. Professional Learning Team
discussions shape the instructional focus of
these sessions to ensure that students are
receiving the support they need to learn the
material.
Students in the elective class will focus on
learning math strategies designed to assist
them with their individual needs. Students
will participate in a V-MATH program.

Students identified with a behavior problem

receive one-on-one mentoring to try to
support them in making better decisions
about their behaviors. Teachers also
collaborate with their peers with whom
identified students have a positive
relationship to try to explore ways to help
build a better relationship between the
teacher and the identified student. In
addition the Intervention Team develops a
variety of strategies to try to address student
behavior problems and then monitors the
improvement shown through the use of
these strategies.

Assessment

Students will be assessed in mulitple ways

including quarterly benchmarks, frequent
teacher-created in-class common
asssessments, PathDriver screening
assessments three times a year, writing
assessments, book responses, and teacher
observation during classroom activities.

Students will be assessed in mulitple ways

including quarterly benchmarks, frequent
teacher-created in-class common
asssessments, PathDriver screening
assessments three times a year, and teacher
observation during classroom activities.

Behavior problems are progress monitored

weekly which includes reviewing data from
observations, walk-throughs, and
consultations with classroom teachers. In
addition documentation from the push in
observations is also used for monitoring
improvement in the problem behaviors.

Core curriculum, 40 Book Challenge (reading

40 books throughout the year), Battle of the
Books, Spelling Bee, Book Fair, AOR, and
AMP

Core curriculum, MathCounts, AMC 8, Math

Olympiad, and V-MATH

PBIS including reteaching and modeling

appropriate behavior throughout the school
at all times, ALC Curriculum, ALC Structures
including problem solving skills, Special
needs students specifically identified for
behavior receive a behavior curriculum
within their classes

Curriculum/Resources

Page 19 of 20

Intervention Planning Matrix

School Improvement Plan

School:

West Cary MS

Plan Year

2014-2016

School Year: 2015-2016

Reading

Math

Behavior

Student Identification
Intervention
Structure
Instruction
Assessment
Curriculum/Resources

Page 20 of 20